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DERMOT AND STRONGBOW, AND THE INVASION OF IRELAND
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Dermot MacMurrough was the King of Leinster during
the twelfth century and is most remembered as the
man who invited the English into Ireland.
He was born circa 1100 and succeeded to the throne
of his father, Enna, in 1126. He was a ruthless
leader and demonstrated the ferocity of the times
by killing or blinding 17 rivals in 1141. He became
involved in a dispute with the King of Breffney,
Tiernan O'Ruark, whose wife he kidnapped in 1153.
O'Ruark formed an alliance with Rory O'Connor who
was the recognised High King of Ireland at the
time. In 1166 this long-running and bitter feud
resulted in MacMurrough being driven into exile
by the Gaelic Chieftains. He fled to France.
Dermot MacMurrough was a deeply ambitious man who
refused to accept his exile. He made his way to
the Court of Henry II of England and offered to
become a vassal to the King in return for military
aid in retaking his kingdom. The king did not
directly provide assistance but allowed MacMurrough
to petition the Anglo-Norman lords. It was at this
time that the Earl of Pembroke, Richard de Clare,
later known as 'Strongbow', agreed to lead an army
to Ireland. MacMurrough brought an advance party
of adventurers back to Ireland in 1167,
recaptured Wexford, and waited for Strongbow to
arrive.
From his base in Wales Strongbow launched an
offensive in 1170, capturing Waterford and Dublin,
taking control of the East coast, much to the
dismay of the Gaelic Chieftains and O'Connor. To
cement the alliance, MacMurrough married his
daughter Aoife to Strongbow, in Christchurch
Cathedral in Dublin 1170.
The Irish Chieftains did not allow the invaders
to settle however and they were continually
attacked and harassed. At one stage it seemed
likely that they would be driven from the country
if it were not for the support given by Henry II,
who had become concerned with the amount of power
and influence that Strongbow was amassing across
the Irish sea. It is speculated that Henry II
feared that Ireland might be used as a base by
the Saxons to launch an offensive back into England
in the wake of their defeat at Hastings in 1066.
The subsequent domination of South Wales by the
Normans was a result of the need to keep supply
lines into Eastern Ireland open.
Dermot MacMurrough died in 1170 leaving Strongbow
to declare himself King of Leinster. His later
support for Henry II in France led to his being
named Governor of Ireland. He died in 1176
suffering an infection during a raid by Irish
rebels.
Much of Ireland was still under local influence
and it only was the East coast, known as 'the Pale',
that remained in Norman control. Henry granted
these lands to his son 'Jean Sans-terre' (or John
Lackland) in 1185 creating the 'Lordship of
Ireland'. It seemed likely that Ireland would
remain a minor Kingdom except that fate intervened.
The death of his elder brothers allowed Jean
Sans-terre to succeed to the English throne,
becoming King John of England and the Pale
becoming part of English dominated territories.
Demot MacMurrough has for centuries been blamed
as the man who caused, or at least facilitated
the invasion and subsequent subjugation of Ireland
by outsiders. Recent revision of this history
however, have been less critical of his actions.
It is likely that the island would have eventually
been dominated by its larger neighbour even
without Dermot MacMurroughs prompting. The
unwillingness of the Gaelic Chiefs to form a
Kingship with defined rights of succession
certainly made invasion and domination easier. It
was also not uncommon of the times for Gaelic
Chiefs to seek help from foreigners in combatting
their local enemies.
Despite this more generous interpretation of his
actions, it will always be Dermot MacMurroughs
lust for power, bringing the English into Ireland,
for which he will be most remembered.
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